Date:
Friday, August 31, 2001From: Big DogSubject: By and Large,Duped by The Duke

Smarmy, smug,
elitist… words I jokingly used to describe Tony Massarotti of the Boston
Herald a few weeks ago should truly be reserved for our not-much-maligned
General Manager who’s been insulting our intelligence for far too long. And
did I mention grifter, fraud, phony? As Seattle GM
Pat Gillick, a real General Manager, correctly said “they fired the wrong
guy.”

We have a $110
million payroll, but we can’t get a runner home, are running ourselves out of
every game, and don’t even go down swinging when the game’s on the line in the 9th.
Nice team you put together with that monopoly money Duke.

Everyone thought
he was a hero when he signed Monney Ramirez.

Puleeze. Harrington just opened
up the vault for you, we know the deal Dan. And what does Monney do for us? Sure, he takes his at-bats and puts up his personal numbers. Cashes the check. Goes back to the Ritz. But was he taping up his hamstring like Jason Giambi a
week ago? Was he on the top step of the dugout in Texas shouting
encouragement to his team while his boys were dying out there? Did he demand
that he be available to pinch hit in one of those late extra innings (he could
have walked to first if he had to; one more hit would have won that Texas
game, which essentially killed this team)? No, your $13 million-a-year prize was getting a makeover in
Ft. Myers. Big deal Duke. Not exactly a rocket science signing Duke. Speaking
of Rocket science, how long can you avoid looking him in eye after your
thoughtless ‘twilight’ comment (yes, I still hate the Texas Con Man, but no
need to take foolish parting shots when he’s out the door anyway)?

Can anyone believe
we’re on the hook for Offerman for another year with an $8.5 million buyout?
Wonderful. And how much more would it have been, brainiac, to sign Roberto
Alomar… another couple of million (could have taken it out of your golden
parachute for when the new owners fire your not-so-wise ass)? I only went to
UMass Amherst, Amherst boy, but guess what: you ain’t so smart.

And as ESPN’s
Peter Gammons noted this week, during the entire Duquette regime, he has not
developed a single pitcher who has won more than nine games in Major League
Baseball. Eight years, not one. And where are the next generation of Red Sox
pitchers we were promised? Jin Ho Cho? Carlos Castillo? Ken “I hate Boston”
Over-The-Hill?!?

Trenton, Sarasota,
Augusta, Lowell, Gulf Coast… all at or near the bottom of their respective
leagues. Barely a prospect in the bunch. Where's our C. C. Sabathia? See you
later Danny boy, and don't let the door hit you on the way out.

Moyer for Bragg?
Genius.

When he took over
for Lou Gorman he promised to build this organization through the farm
system. We’ll Duke, the horses have left the barn (Hi Jimy… stop laughing for
a minute… you’ll spill your Pina Colada all over the USA Today baseball page
that now keeps you so amused every day) and there’s not a thoroughbred in the
bunch. Izzy? Joe 'Castaway' Oliver? Where are the prospects you promised to
groom eight years ago? Oh yes, David Eckstein is a pretty good player… for
the Angels.

Lou “the sun will
go up, the sun will go down, and I’ll have lunch” Gorman would be welcomed
back with open arms at this point. So would Haywood Sullivan for that matter.

Hey Duke, why
don’t you get on the T yourself (is there a worse ad in the history of
advertising) and take it all the way to China. The free ride is
over. And you’re in the twilight of your career. We've had enough of your crap
in Red Sox Nation. ٱ

The “Curt’s Pitch
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ALS Association Mass Chapter to strike out Amyotrophic Lateral
Sclerosis, more commonly known as Lou Gehrig’s Disease.

Curt and Shonda
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Chapter, and they are asking fans to contribute as well. All proceeds
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Please
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